Pressure cracks pipes or makes diamonds. It’s all about how we handle it. 

VIS Mentor Allisha Gray has played in the WNBA since 2017, starting on the Dallas Wings before being traded to the Atlanta Dream. Gray also plays in Unrivaled for the Mist. Before starting her professional career, Gray played under coach Dawn Staley at the University of South Carolina, where she won a National Championship in 2017.

In her time talking to us, Gray broke down what pressure meant to her and how she manages it, highlighting staying focused as a key tool. 

Pressure

Pressure can be felt at any level. We can feel it in middle school, club, high school, college, and beyond. 

The first time Gray remembers feeling pressure, she said, was during a high school game when there were seven DI coaches sitting in the stands to watch her play. But she said pressure can range in causation, spanning from something small, like practice, to something bigger, like a championship game. 

“I would say, as an athlete, there are a lot of different types of pressure that you will face,” Gray said. “It can be something so simple like being your first game that your parents can make it to, or maybe you're playing in your hometown that holds meaning to you.”

Another time she felt pressure was entering the National Championship game in 2017. It was  the last game that she would play for South Carolina and for Staley, so she felt pressure to perform and get the victory for the team. One of Gray’s biggest tips in regards to handling the pressure in our sport is to remember that sports are something that we find pleasure in so we can find the joy and excitement in playing again.

“I'll say the best thing to do in those moments is just take a deep breath and realize that at the end of the day, it's just a basketball game and it's something that you enjoy doing,” Gray said. “I always remind myself that I love being out on the court and that helps me center my focus.”

“I'll say the best thing to do in those moments is just take a deep breath and realize that at the end of the day, it's just a basketball game and it's something that you enjoy doing. ”

VIS Mentor Allisha Gray

Staying Focused

Gray also emphasizes the importance of staying focused. By staying focused, the pressures around can become smaller or less impactful on our playing.

“Being focused to me means being locked in on the task at hand,” Gray said. “No outside distractions. At that moment when I cross those lines and I'm getting ready for my game, nothing else in the world matters, just what is going on on the court.”

Her favorite way of getting locked in is to clear her mind. She plays her portable video game on every gameday in order to forget about everything else going on around her. 

Gray also gave advice to refocusing through fan distractions. The goal of fans, she said, is to get into your head. And once you allow that to happen, the pressure will hit you even harder.

“When you let them get to you, then it affects other parts of your game,” Gray said. “So when it happens for me, I just focus my energy back on the court because when you start making plays, it quiets them down. It's important for me to just worry about myself, what I control on the court.” 

Sacrifices and Goals

One of Gray’s favorite quotes is ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day.’

“To me, that means that you have to just stack your days and put in the work,” Gray said. “Things just don't happen overnight. It will take you setting goals for yourself and then making sacrifices on the road to achieve those goals.”

The first sacrifice Gray remembers making was during her summers. Instead of traveling like the other kids in her school, she would spend her summers playing in different AAU tournaments, dedicating her time to improvement. 

For Gray, writing down her goals makes sacrifices feel easier and more worth it. This past season, she wanted to be an All-Star and be a part of the First-Team All-WNBA, both of which she achieved. She also ended the season fourth in MVP votes and was the highest-voted guard.

“I always write my goals down in my notes on my iPhone, and I don't look back at them until the season is completed because it helps me stay focused during the season,” Gray said. “I know if I continuously, like, go back to my phone and just look at the goals, it's more added pressure to me. And that's something that I want to avoid.” 

“ It's important for me to just worry about myself, what I control on the court.”

VIS Mentor Allisha Gray

Support

Gray’s last advice when handling pressure is to have a solid support system around you. Whether it’s friends, family, or teammates, the people around you play crucial roles in your ability to focus and play without stress.

“In between shootaround leading up to the game, I only talk to the people in my circle because at that moment I need to lock in,” Gray said. “I don't have time for distractions. So during that time my parents are pretty much the only people I talk to within that frame from leaving shootaround up to the jump ball.”

Inside of the team, Gray has found her people to help her through tough times.

In order to avoid getting overwhelmed, she keeps her circle within the team tight during high pressure moments, relying mainly on teammates Naz Hillmon and VIS Mentor Rhyne Howard.

“I can't have a lot of people talking to me at one time,” Gray said. “They've designated me one of the assistant coaches to come talk to me. And then everybody on the team knows when I'm flustered or something, only Rhyne Howard and Naz Hillmon are allowed to talk to me because I don't want to get overstimulated.”

Early Pro Years

Gray was picked fourth-overall in the 2017 WNBA Draft by the Dallas Wings. 

In her first couple of games, she was forced to guard Maya Moore and Seimone Augustus, two players who are now in the Hall of Fame, and Diana Taurasi, the all-time WNBA scoring leader.

“But I had to look myself in the mirror and be like, ‘hey, I'm in the W too, I believe in myself and I belong here,’” Gray said. “My best advice for [handling] pressure and staying focused is to realize who you are and always remember you're here for a reason.”

The adjustment period when entering the league was quick for Gray. She had to go from playing people her own age to people who were upwards of 40 and had years of experience in the WNBA. 

In order to stay sharp in the league, she continued to remind herself that she belonged and that she was picked to be in these positions for a reason, which helped to take off some of the pressure and allowed her to play her own game.

Gray also talked about her ability to refocus after making a mistake by thinking about the future instead of the past. By moving on instead of thinking about it, it isn’t able to affect you as much as it would otherwise.

“I always have a next play mentality because I know for me if I harp on my last bad play, then it can affect my next play,” Gray said.

“Things just don't happen overnight. It will take you setting goals for yourself and then making sacrifices on the road to achieve those goals.”

VIS Mentor Allisha Gray

Takeaways

“A lot of times in sports, we're judged based off our performance, how many points we score, or if we win a certain game,” Gray said. “But that's exactly what leads to some of these pressure things that athletes have. For me, I just deal with this by just knowing myself and knowing what I'm capable of.”

In order to be a diamond, you must be able to handle and grow from pressure. Allisha Gray’s tips on handling this pressure can help athletes at all levels be successful and grow with the pressure instead of away from it.